As individuals and as a society, we make decisions every day about how to distribute limited resources. We understand — although we may not like it — why snow plows are driving three abreast down the turnpike and not clearing neighborhood roads at all.Account-based marketing, in a similar fashion, is the art of allocating sales and marketing dollars in the most efficient manner. Just as a public works department inhales data on snowfall and accidents to determine exactly when and where to deploy its salt trucks, ABM teaches businesses to devour data and put their marketing money where it most needs to be.No municipal government can plow every street, and no business can reach every potential customer. The key, then, is choosing your targets wisely.​Aim With ABMYou know why certain streets should be cleared first, but it might not be so clear why business leaders shouldn’t pursue every prospect.Joe Chernov, VP of Marketing at InsightSquared, succinctly shared the “why” behind ABM: “Account-based marketing is the ability to focus on the right accounts — and their specific needs and attributes — to increase close rates, revenue growth, and market share goals.”ABM might sound time-intensive, but inbound marketing and account base marketing and sales automation technologies like Marketo, Salesforce, Pardot, Outreach, Engagio and Terminus have made it an affordable, scalable option. And considering that 97 percent of B2B marketers believe ABM delivers higher return than other marketing initiatives, the setup time is well worth the investment.